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Scenery rolls by your window on a long road trip, creating a movie with a sound track orchestrated by the tunes on your radio. New York’s skyscrapers disappear from the rearview mirror while the Atlantic Ocean beckons you forward to your destination in Florida. Travelers have two options: a high-speed trip down the interstate or a leisurely drive through small towns.

New York to Florida Road Trip by Interstate

Interstate 95 is the most direct route to Florida from New York. The highway hugs the East Coast for around 1,300 miles from the Big Apple to Miami and takes about 18 hours to drive. Like most interstate travel, frequent exits with gas stations and lodging make trip planning easy. If I-95 is your chosen route and you're in need of a rest stop at South Carolina's border with North Carolina, look for South of the Border, an enormous rest stop that includes two full-service restaurants, a campground, a motel, rides for kids and multiple gift shops.

Washington, D.C., as well as Baltimore, Richmond and Savannah, are on the route, and short detours take travelers to Atlantic Ocean beaches in Florida and the Carolinas. Kings Dominion, a major theme park in Virginia, is on the interstate, and Orlando’s theme parks are about 45 miles west.

Traffic on I-95 can be bad, especially around cities and in construction zones. Use an app like Waze for alerts on hazards and traffic jams and for alternate route suggestions that help when you find yourself crawling along the highway. If you’re driving an electric car, keep in mind that Maryland House and Chesapeake House rest areas along I-95 in Maryland have electric vehicle charging stations.

A Classic Road Trip From New York to Florida

Roadtrippers encounter traffic lights and small-town speed limits along U.S. Route 1, but the appeal of a more leisurely pace and serendipitous sightseeing goes far in compensating for lack of speed. The route goes through Washington, D.C., and past Civil War battlefields in Virginia before nearing what is arguably the trip's quirkiest site: the world’s largest fire hydrant in Columbia, South Carolina.

When you reach Florida, switch to state Route A1A between Jacksonville and Daytona Beach for the drive along the oceanfront. After Miami, U.S. Route 1 extends all the way to the tip of the Florida Keys.

Add a couple of days to your itinerary to allow for the slower pace. If you’re the sort of traveler who's anxious over not having all of your hotel reservations in order, plan to drive about five hours a day and make reservations accordingly. Footloose travelers who prefer to find hotels on the fly should download an app like Hotel Tonight that finds discounted rooms, or the mobile apps from Booking.com or Hotels.com.

Long Road Trip Tips

As good as Google maps and your GPS are, it's still wise to pack a paper road atlas, especially if you’re traveling U.S. Route 1. The road merges with other roads several times between New York and Florida. Your paper atlas will tell you what your apps don’t when you find yourself asking, "How did I get on 401?"

Pack a powerstrip to use in hotel rooms. If you and your traveling companions all plug into the powerstrip, at least one of you will remember to unplug, preventing others from leaving devices and power cords in the room. Check the back of the TV if you need a spare USB port.

Use apps like TV Food Maps, which directs users to local restaurants that have been featured on TV shows, and GasBuddy, which finds the cheapest gas prices along your route.

About the Author

Native New Yorker Meg Jernigan stayed in Washington, D.C. after attending the George Washington University, and worked in the tourism industry with the National Park Service for many years. Her interpretations of local and American history helped visitors from around the world see the capitol city in a new light. She has traveled from coast to coast in the United States, and ridden the train from city to city in Europe. Jernigan began writing about travel more than a decade ago, focusing on making travelers feel like locals before they reach their destination.

Leaf Group is a USA TODAY content partner providing general travel information. Its content is produced independently of USA TODAY.